


Can't Step Back Now

by semimotivatednerds, spectreofstardust



Series: IN2IT WEEKS - Yin [1]
Category: IN2IT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Medieval, Fairy, Friendship, Gen, Knight!Hyunuk, Knight!Sunghyun, Knights - Freeform, Magic, Platonic Relationships, comedic attempted murder, fairy!inpyo, fey, fey!Jiahn, imp, imp!inho, sorry fairy /lord/, start of friendship - Freeform, yes there is a difference
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-01
Updated: 2018-11-01
Packaged: 2019-08-13 22:21:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,344
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16480844
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/semimotivatednerds/pseuds/semimotivatednerds, https://archiveofourown.org/users/spectreofstardust/pseuds/spectreofstardust
Summary: Week One: SupernaturalAt the end of it all, Sunghyun could say that he had learned a valuable lesson.  Two, actually.  The first one was that fey was not the same thing as fairy.  And the second, always listen to Hyunuk.





	Can't Step Back Now

**Author's Note:**

  * For [spectreofstardust](https://archiveofourown.org/users/spectreofstardust/gifts).



> This is the first installation of my IN2IT WEEKS prompts, which I'm doing with the lovely Yang, @spectreofstardust! For the next seven weeks get ready to enjoy a few themed In2it fics meant to spread the lovely for our talented kings :D  
> ~Yin
> 
> Title from In2it's "Amazing"

**Day 2 - Midnight-ish**

    “I told you it was too easy.”  Hyunuk was too nice to glare at him.  Not too nice to do the ‘ _ I told you so _ ’ bit though.  Sunghyun had thought that they had gotten past the need for that.  They had been partners for years now. The two knights of fortune had gone on plenty of adventures and honestly, they shouldn’t be keeping track of things like this.

    At least, that was Sunghyun’s humble opinion.

    He didn’t think he had any room to complain though.  Not as he stared at the smoldering remains of his and Hyunuk’s now burnt blankets which had been serving as their beds.  He looked up to see the smugly silent Jiahn looking curiously at the ashes. 

    “That was a weak attempt.”  Sunghyun told him.

    “I didn’t count on your friend being such a light sleeper,” the fey replied with an unaffected air.  Sunghyun felt like he should be offended by how nonchalant Jiahn was about trying to kill him. But at this point, he was honestly too tired.  And it had only been a day and a half since they had captured the fey.

    “Aren’t his binds supposed to stop his magic?”  Sunghyun turned to Hyunuk, the one who knew a bit more about magic.  Sunghyun preferred the more...physical aspects of their job. Fighting people was right up his alley.  Fighting the magic the fey could perform...a little less so. 

    “Only to a certain extent.  The only way to stop him completely would be to find a way to cut him off from his magic somehow.  If you tie a person’s arms behind his back, he can still move his hands about to some extent. It’s the same thing with his magic.  To bind it so that it’s completely unusable would be as difficult as stopping someone from moving completely. And just as dangerous  Since we hired to bring him back alive and unharmed, this is the best we can do.” Hyunuk explained, carefully never looking at the fey who was looking a little too happy when he heard that extra bit about the job.   

    “It’s rather inconvenient for you, that alive and unharmed bit, isn’t it?”  Jiahn asked. “Unfortunately for you, I’m not under the same contract. There’s absolutely no reason for me to keep the two of you unharmed  _ or _ alive.”

    Sunghyun couldn’t really take the fey’s words personally.  After all, the fey had been the one who just a day previously had been drugged and kidnapped.  Sunghyun and Hyunuk had been the ones to do it. Still, the fey could be a little nicer about the whole thing.  For some reason Sunghyun was sure he’d never understand, Yeontae had wanted Jiahn to be as comfortable as possible along the way.  He thought of the man who had offered them the job. Yeontae’s threats at the idea of anything (even things outside of Sunghyun’s control) happening to Jiahn had been … colorful, to say the least.

     Sunghyun really wished he had listened to Hyunuk and had refused the job.  

     Hyunuk usually to wasn’t wrong about these things.

     He always seemed to know when something was going to go wrong.  

     But Sunghyun had ignored him.  Had gone off those stories he had heard about fairies and how nice they were.  How kind and helpful. Gentle souls, the stories said. He figured bringing a single one to Yeontae would be an easy job.  And the pay… Well, the pay had been a rather large sum. With the thoughts of such a large reward  _ and _ an easy job in his mind, well, Sunghyun had agreed rather quickly.  

     Hyunuk’s premonitions about the job had come true almost immediately as soon as the drugs had worn off.

     The first attempt on Sunghyun and Hyunuk’s lives had happened within minutes after Jiahn had woken up.  (Sunghyun would never look at his sword quite the same way after it had swung itself - all by itself too - at his throat).  And they had only continued. Sunghyun had lost track at this point. 

     He didn’t think Hyunuk had, but he didn’t want to anger the other knight anymore than he currently did just by existing.  He was pretty sure that if he made his partner think about this job anymore than he absolutely had to, Jiahn would gain an ally in his attacks on Sunghyun’s life. While Sunghyun knew that he could easily defeat Hyunuk  _ and _ the fey  _ separately _ \- he didn’t want to face the two of them together. 

    Hyunuk knew far too many of his weaknesses anyway.  Sunghyun would have no chance of surviving. It was far better to roll his cloak a little tighter around him and keep his mouth shut.  Who knows, maybe during the night Jiahn would start to feel bad for the murder attempts and start to be a little nicer.

      Probably not, but thinking about nice things before he fell asleep always helped Sunghyun have more pleasant dreams. 

 

**Day 3: 10 am**

Jiahn didn’t get any nicer through the night as Sunghyun had hoped.  If anything, Jiahn had gotten more petty. 

    Apparently, the stories hadn’t been wrong.  Fairies could get by on no sleep. And Jiahn, in keeping with his people’s abilities, had spent the entire night awake.

     He had also apparently decided that if he didn’t need any sleep than neither did his two human captors.  He was wrong, of course. Humans did in fact need sleep. 

    It was probably the lack of sleep that was causing Hyunuk to appear as if he was frowning.  If Sunghyun had managed to do something that made his normally very easy going, very kind partner frown than Sunghyun really was the worst of the worst and deserved to die whatever painful, horrible demise Jiahn had planned for him.  

    A sound to his left shook him out of his thoughts and had him ducking down.  The fireball that came out of nowhere just barely missed him.

    He sighed as he pushed himself back up, using the thick muscles at the bottom of the horse’s neck.  No reward was worth this. 

 

**Day 3: 1 pm**

    There was a sound of branches being pushed away from behind their little stopping place for lunch.  With a groan both Sunghyun and Hyunuk turned to face this new threat conjured up by Jiahn. Hopefully it wasn’t a lion again.  Or a bear. Sunghyun just wanted it to be nothing.

    It was definitely not nothing.

    “Okay, shouldn’t conjuring up another fey be significantly more power than he can use?”  Sunghyun asked Hyunuk, not daring to take his eyes off of the being in front of him. 

    It would have been hard to, even without the threat of death.  All fairies had something...extra about them. A beauty than no human could ever dream of attaining.  Attractiveness so eye-catching that it had literally driven humans crazy in the past. 

    Jiahn had it.  It was just that the whole planning his murder was enough to get Sunghyun to ignore it.

    But this fairy.  

    Well Sunghyun was pretty sure that this fairy was the cause for all the all the stories about fairies’ beauty.  It was almost painful to look at this current fairy and the way he shone in the light; the glow that supernatural creatures were blessed with seemed to be brighter around this one. 

    “What?”  The creature blinked at Sunghyun in confusion.  Even his voice was gentle and kind, just like the lying stories had suggested.  Sunghyun frowned refusing to think of those stories. They were obviously just stories.  Jiahn was nothing like Sunghyun would have expected. 

    “I’m not a fey.”  The being continued.  “I’m a fairy. Lord Inpyo of the Summer Court, to be exact.”  He tilted his head slightly, heedless of the two knights with their weapons pointed toward him.  “Which should be enough to tell you that I wasn’t summoned by the fey. They don’t give out the lord title to just anyone, you know.”

    Now it was Sunghyun’s turn to blink in confusion.  “There’s a difference?”

    He couldn’t take his eyes off of Inpyo, so he felt more than saw Hyunuk whip his head toward him, as the older knight gasped.  “Unbelievable. I’ve told you at least a thousand times. Fairies will help you, fey will kill you.”

    Sunghyun let his sword tip end up on the ground as he turned to look at a grinning Jiahn, sharp teeth gleaming in the sunlight.  

    Well, that explained a lot.  “That would have been nice to know  _ before _ we kidnapped him.”

    “I tried to tell you.  Why did you think I told you not to take the job?”  Hyunuk’s tone was disbelieving. 

     “I had absolutely no idea.”  Sunghyun tried to defend himself.  “I just thought….I don’t know what I thought.”  He admitted lamely. 

   Inpyo had seemed rather amused as he watched the two bicker.  Sunghyun felt that it was probably a little condescending, but at this point, he figured he deserved some condescension. He bet that the beautiful fairy  had never messed up quite this badly. 

     Jiahn’s voice was deceptively soft.  “Well, seeing as there’s been a misunderstanding here.  Why don’t you let me go? You can just go on your way, and I can go on mine and it will just be a nice little adventure.”

    Sunghyun didn’t bother talking to anyone in particular.  “He’d kill us in a heartbeat, right?”

    “Oh, definitely.”  There was a genuine note of amusement in Inpyo’s voice that made Sunghyun think that fey weren’t the only ones that the stories didn’t describe too well.  Sure, fairies might help humans as a whole - but there was definitely more depth there than just a kind, helpful being who was in it for the human’s sake. 

**Day 4: 9am**

    Inpyo had been completely helpful since deciding to grace the little trio with his company.   Apparently he had become invested in Sunghyun and Hyunuk’s continued survival. Or at least, that’s what he had said when explaining why he would stick around.  Sunghyun thought it was because the fairy was interested in the free entertainment. Jiahn hadn’t been very pleased with this turn of events, and Sunghyun didn’t think he could blame him.  Though he was sure they had different reasons.

    Jiahn didn’t like the fairy because Inpyo would sometimes help Sunghyun or Hyunuk avoid one of Jiahn’s traps.

    Sunghyun didn’t like Inpyo because the fairy was enjoying himself entirely too much.  

    “You see, this is why I managed to find you,” Inpyo was telling the fey who was looking particularly murderous.  “You’re giving off ridiculous amounts of magic as you try to kill the mortals. You’re asking for a random stranger to come investigate their curiousity.  And think about it, the next one might not be as gracious as I am.”

    “Do you ever stop talking?”

    Inpyo gasped at Jiahn’s reply.  Sunghyun had always assumed that gasps were soft things, on the quiet side.  He was learnign that he was wrong on a lot of things on this trip. “Well, I never.  I am a fairy  _ lord _ , I’ll have you know.”

 

**Day 5: 4pm**

    Apparently, Inpyo was only going to help when it came to the subtle threats.  When it came to big, obvious ones he had absolutely no compunction sitting back and watching.  Hyunuk had moved past passive aggressively teaching Sunghyun about the different magical beings and their differences.  Now, he was simply glaring at Sunghyun.

   Sunghyun had a feeling it had something to do with the fact that Hyunuk was missing part of his eyebrow.  Inpyo had been helpful enough to heal the actual wound. He had decided that Hyunuk’s new look was one he rather liked and so refused to fix that aspect.  Hyunuk didn’t feel the same and was holding Sunghyun completely responsible for it. 

    Sunghyun couldn’t necessarily blame him.  Though, he felt like some of Hyunuk’s glares should be directed at Jiahn.   However, that would require Hyunuk acknowledging that Jiahn existed. And Hyunuk was apparently trying to avoid that.  

 

**Day 6: 10 pm**

     Hyunuk had taken up scouting.  He rode a bit ahead of Sunghyun and the others, sometimes circling back to inform them that the road was clear up ahead.  He preferred just leaving something to signal that everything was okay. Sunghyun supposed he couldn’t be too judgmental  _ or _ jealous of Hyunuk since it was Sunghyun’s fault that they were in this mess.

    He just wished that he could get out of spending all his time with Jiahn as well.  But, he did not think it would end well for him at all if he asked Hyunuk to switch with him and let him ride up ahead sometimes.

    In fact, he got a very strong feeling that asking for that favor just might bring about his early demise.

    Jiahn wouldn’t even be the one responsible for it. 

    With Hyunuk keeping his distance from the group during the day, it gave Sunghyun a chance to talk to Inpyo.

    It was lovely at first.  By the end of the third hour, Sunghyun was almost hoping that Jiahn would succeed in one of his murder attempts.  Inpyo was very friendly, very open and  _ very _ talkative.  For all the time they spent in nature, fairies apparently didn’t appreciate the silence too much.  Or maybe it was just Inpyo. It could have been a divine punishment for not listening to his partner - making Sunghyun realize just how important Hyunuk was too him.  

    How quiet Hyunuk could be.  

    Hyunuk was a very considerate partner.  Sunghyun was never going to go against Hyunuk’s wishes again.  

 

**Day 7: 2 pm**

And he had thought the chatter had been bad before… Sunghyun was learning just how much he could take before he went on over and realized Jiahn’s bonds.  Both physical and magical. Forget letting Jiahn get lucky with his forty-third attempt. Sunghyun was thinking about doing whatever it took to make sure that number forty three actually killed him.  

    He went to share a commiserating look with Hyunuk before he remembered…  Hyunuk liked the new addition to their apparently ever growing party. 

    Isaac Voo was a traveler from the east on a bit of a tight schedule.  Isaac Voo was being “haunted.” And Han Hyunuk was someone that liked to help people.  Especially friendly little travelers being haunted, Sunghyun thought sarcastically too himself.  

    Hyunuk had come riding back only a few hours earlier, giving Sunghyun a bit of a fright.  The other knight had made it clear that he was planning on avoiding the trio as much as he could and Sunghyun’s imagination was running wild trying to figure out what could drive Hyunuk back so soon.  And then he saw the second horseman and his thoughts really started going a mile a minute.

    The explanation was simple.  

     “At first I didn’t realize what was going on.  I just thought it was weird noises….”   
    “Then the water went missing…”

    “...broken girth strap…”

    “....a terrifying face….it was horrific…”

    “...the sounds of talking - but no one’s there…”

    “....More days…”

    Okay, the talkative Isaac’s explanation was far from simple.  But a far more reasonable Hyunuk explained the story he had taken the time to figure out.  Isaac was being followed by what Hyunuk (and Inpyo) thought to be an imp. 

    “Imps aren’t inherently dangerous,” Inpyo explained.  “They’re not necessarily malicious even. They just have a flair for the dramatics and they enjoy playing with people.  They just don’t always realize how...fragile...the human mind can be. They’d do the same thing to each other.”

     Isaac sniffed miserably.  “They sound awful. I don’t think I’ve slept properly in weeks.”  Sunghyun could attest that Isaac had definitely been sleeping fine.  People who weren’t sleeping looked like ...well, they looked like Sunghyun.  Sunghyun would know. He’d barely slept at all since they had picked up Jiahn, and what little sleep he did get was restless and light.  

    “You can stay with us,” Hyunuk offered. “Imps tend to avoid larger groups since it can dangerous for them.”

    “Are you sure that would be okay?  I wouldn’t want to impose.” Everyone was pretty sure that Isaac was only asking to be polite.  Sunghyun was pretty sure that at this point they wouldn’t be able to chase the man off. 

    “Of course it is,” Hyunuk assured him.  “There’s already a few of us gathered here.  And with Lord Inpyo, I’m doubly sure the imp won’t mess with us.”

    Sunghyun mentally groaned.  The second Isaac was sure he would be staying with the group it was like he lost all tension in his body and was instantly at ease.  

    Sunghyun quickly learned a new lesson.  Inpyo really wasn’t  _ that _ talkative.  Isaac could easily put the outgoing fairy to sham.  However, Sunghyun learned another lesson. The antisocial Jiahn was looking a bit exhausted of all the chatter.  And instead of making him even more homicidal, the fey hadn’t even tried to make another attempt on Sunghyun’s life in the past two hours.  

    Sunghyun figured he could probably live with the chatter.  At least for a little while longer. 

**Day 8: 9 pm**

“AAAAHHHHH!!!”  Isaac screamed, the sound echoing and causing Sunghyun to drop the flint he was using to try and start a fire.  He turned quickly, catching a glimpse of movement in the darkening forest.

     Hyunuk was on his feet, his sword drawn even as musical laughter filled the small campsite.  He groaned, sheathing his sword and sitting down once again. 

    “I’m apparently not the only one with something to learn about supernatural beings,” Sunghyun pointed out.  He needed something to focus on before he and Jiahn joined up to bash their heads against the largest nearby rock.  

    Hyunuk just signed in response, resting his head against his knees.  Isaac was still breathing heavily in the background. Hyunuk had been wrong, the imp had not stopped following Isaac just because he was now part of a larger group.  Maybe he was more subtle about harassing the jumpiest member of the group, but he was definitely still following them. 

    “Where’d Inpyo go?”  Isaac asked as he looked for the fairy member of the group, trying to distract himself from the imp who had faded into the woods again.  The tall fairy normally was in stitches by now, enjoying the whole situation far too much. 

     Jiahn was grumbling from his spot against a tree on the far side of the camp.  “Maybe he went back where he came from.”

     “One can only hope,” Sunghhyun mumbled under his breath.  Even Hyunuk’s - who had the patience of a saint - temper had been fraying lately.  Sunghyun didn’t feel bad in anyway that he had long ago reached that part. Honestly, he was impressed that so far all the members of the group (both official and unofficial) were still alive.  Sometimes one had to be thankful for the little things.

    Another rustle in the trees and Hyunuk was once more in an alert position.  Sunghyun was as well, but at this point, it was just his training keeping him up.  He felt like his spirit had left him long ago and his body was only responding with the actions that had been pounded into him.  

    His jaw dropped as the imp was gently prodded into the clearing by the group’s missing fairy.  To the side, Isaac hurried to get behind Hyunuk. Jiahn groaned. Inpyo was grinning brightly, an excited glow around him.  

    He gestured at the delicate looking imp.  “This is Inho.”

**Day 9: 11 am**

    Inho was now part of the group.  

**Day 9** :  **2 pm**

    Isaac was looking far more tense than he had been even in the beginning of their acquaintance.

**Day 9: 6 pm**

    Hyunuk had started his “scouting” again.  Isaac joined him.

    Sunghyun hadn’t thought that Inpyo could look like he was more amused than the time Jiahn tried to set a bear on the two knights.  That was before he had seen the fairy lord interact with Inho. The two were menaces. 

**Day 10: 12 pm**

    Jiahn was looking both murderous and suicidal.  Sunghyun could relate to him.

**Day 11: 8 pm**

    Jiahn’s daily murder attempts were continuing, but at night he had started surrendering to the peace that sleep brought from the other two immortals in the group.

    It had been over a week since Sunghyun had last slept through the night.  “This wasn’t worth it,” he told Hyunuk.

    “I really would normally hate to be this person, but I told you so.”

     “How incredibly helpful.”

**Day 12: 1 pm**

    “If you let me go, I’ll make your death quick and painless.  I’ll also kill the imp before I kill you.” Jiahn’s voice was low, making sure that said imp didn’t overhear the deal he was offering Sunghyun.  

     Sunghyun didn’t think that Inho would hear it either.  He and Inpyo were riding a bit ahead and were deep in their own conversation.  Their voices and laughter carrying back, absolutely no thought devoted to subtlety.  A particular comment made the two devolve into particularly loud laughter. Sunghyun gave Jiahn’s proposal a serious thought.  

    It wasn’t the worst deal in the world.

    In fact, Sunghyun found it rather appealing.

**Day 13: 7 pm**

    Sunghyun rather thought he was developing a twitch.  Laughter and playful conversation was becoming soured for him.

    If the capital city (and the end of the journey) hadn’t been in sight, Sunghyun was positive that he would agreed to release Jiahn.  

**Day 14: 10 am**

    “ _ You _ had me kidnapped!”  Jiahn was pulling himself up to his full height.   Which, now that Sunghyun was paying attention, wasn’t that big at all.  He really couldn’t be taller than Isaac. 

    Hyunuk was shifting uneasily, fully prepared to go and defend Yeontae, who was rather foolishly standing far too close to the angry fey.  It had only been a few minutes since Jiahn had been “delivered” to Yeontae and the scholar looked all too pleased with the situation.

    “Of course I did, Jiahn.”  Yeontae’s grin was bright and entirely too genuine for the absolute danger he was in by facing the glowering fey.  “How else was I supposed to get you here?”

    “Did you ever think I didn’t answer for a reason?”

    Sunghyun wasn’t alone in leaning forward a little, eager to see what was going to happen next.  There were a million thoughts running through his mind. Many different scenarios that he was thinking of.  Were they old rivals? Was Yeontae maybe not as decent as he had first seemed…. Was there a nefarious purpose that Yeontae had wanted Jiahn for?  Had Sunghyun actually delivered the fey to a psycopath?

    That would be rather awkward.

    Sunghyun would be forced to save the fey that he had previously kidnapped.  He wasn’t sure if Hyunuk would even help him this time. Jiahn had managed to really get on Hyunuk’s nerves over the past week and a half.  

    “What  _ possible _ reason could you have for ignoring your  _ best friend _ ?”  Yeontae sounded genuinely hurt, even as he went up and undid Jiahn’s bonds.

    “I’m sorry?”

    “Wait?  What?”

    “Best friend?”

    Inpyo and Inho were laughing now.  Of course they were.

    “I’ve been busy!”  Jiahn insisted. Sunghyun couldn’t help but stare in shock as Jiahn  _ didn’t _ attack Yeontae and instead rubbed where the bonds had been on his wrists.  Yes, he was scowling. But he  _ wasn’t _ attacking Yeontae and that was just as unexpected as Yeontae’s revelation.  

    Sunghyun could only stare in shock as Yeontae pouted.  “But you’re always busy. And I’m human. I’m losing years of my life while you’re ‘busy’.  I’ll be dead before you know it.” 

    “That is rather sad,” Inpyo commented from where he was standing.  “It’s always shocking when you realize how short of a lifespan humans have.”  Jiahn’s head whipped around to glare at Inpyo. The fairy lord apparently was less inclined to anger the fey now that Jiahn was free, and ended up looking away first nonchalantly.  

    “Don’t be dramatic.”  Sunghyun wasn’t sure who Jiahn was talking too.  However, both Inpyo and Yeontae looked a bit cowed.  Sunghyun had a feeling that was Jiahn’s intention. 

    “Well, fine, don’t let me keep you.”  Yeontae told him. “Go back, get busy.”

    Jiahn scowled, but it wasn’t his real one.  Sunghyun would know. The fey had been scowling at him for the past two weeks.  “Well, if I’m here already, I might as well stay for a bit. I’ve already been gone for a while.  You’re making dinner though.”

**Day 1: 11 am**

    “No fey, right?” Sunghyun knew that Hyunuk probably wouldn’t make the same mistake that Sunghyun had, but he wanted to make sure that he wasn’t going to get into the same situation as before.

     “Just imps and fairies.”  Hyunuk reassured him, turning in the saddle to stare at the two beings who were happily conversing.  Isaac was stuck between the two of them, looking very uncomfortable, but when both Inho and Inpyo had invited him to ride with them, he hadn’t had the guts to say no.  

    “I might miss the fey,” Sunghyun said honestly.  He couldn’t help but let out a small groan as he thought about their current mission.  Getting Issac to his destination safely. He thought it was rather backfiring on Isaac though.  The imp had made it clear that he wasn’t planning on leaving the jumpy traveler alone. Isaac, in desperation, had hired the two knights to accompany him to his journey’s end, hoping that with witnesses, the imp wouldn’t be able to do anything too bad.  Sunghyun had then bribed Inpyo to come along, knowing that the fairy was the only one who would be able to keep the imp in line. 

    At the time Sunghyun had thought that they probably would make it to the end of their trip and he and Hyunuk would be able to go on their way; taking a new mission that would not include any supernatural creatures.  

    Another raucous round of laughter from the two immortals and a very audible whimper from Isaac had Sunghyun rethinking that idea.  There was no way this was going to end well. 


End file.
